New Rules

For way too long I've been way too lenient with the kids. Jeff says I treat them more like my niece and nephew or grandkids than I do my own children. I give them treats all the time, buy them sugary breakfast foods, I wipe up their every spill and mess so they don't have to...and for goodness' sake I've been cleaning their rooms for them!
THIS HAS GOT TO STOP! My desire for sanity at this point trumps my desire to be loved. This past week I've been preparing my family to help out more around the house so when I start working full time again in 2 weeks, it won't be such a shock.
These are some new rules I've decided to impose:
1. Everyone cleans their own dishes after use. I purchased new dinner sets for the kids--they each have their own cup, bowl and plate. After each meal they need to scrape the remaining food off their plates and clean their dishes in the sink.
2. The kids will not leave the house for school until their beds are made and spit from the sink is rinsed after brushing their teeth. Nothing grosses me out more than hardened remnants of spit lining the sink when I get up. Yuck! The rule at Jefferson School is that if kids show up later than 8:25, they miss recess. So the kids have an extra incentive to get their beds made and rinse the sink. And their rooms need to be picked up before they go to bed.
3. FLUSH THE TOILET! I can't believe this has to be a rule. But Max takes after his father and decided, "I really don't like to flush when I pee," he explained. Double yuck!
I thought of adding more chores like folding laundry, taking out the trash, cleaning the bathroom, etc. but these kids aren't used to doing anything so I figured it's best to gradually ease them into doing little things around the house.
Last night I left Max alone in the kitchen when Jeff and I relaxed in the living room. He was in there about 5 minutes before Jeff said, "I don't he knows how to do dishes." I kind of took that for granted that he knew...so I went in to show him how to rinse off his plate and soap it up and rinse it again.
This morning, I thought it was hilarious that as soon as I woke up the kids to get dressed, they immediately made their beds before coming down for breakfast. Laney exclaimed, "We don't want to be late for school!" As I was making their lunches, they went upstairs to brush their teeth and I heard Max yell, "LANEY, RINSE YOUR SPIT FROM THE SINK! Catherine will be mad if she sees your Cheerios all over!" Laney yelled back, "I'LL RINSE IT OUT IF YOU FLUSH THE TOILET! FOR GOODNESS SAKE, YOU DON'T PEE RIGHT! LIFT THE LID SO IT DOESN'T GO EVERYWHERE!"
Kids...so much work, but sometimes so much fun.